OPINION| In a recent Senate hearing, Acting Secret Service Director Ronald Rowe faced tough questions from lawmakers about the agency’s handling of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump. The hearing, which took place on July 30, 2024, was part of a series of congressional hearings dedicated to the shooting that occurred on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania.
During the hearing, Rowe was confronted with an email from a Secret Service counter-sniper warning that the agency “SHOULD EXPECT ANOTHER assassination attempt” before November due to inadequate leadership. The email, sent to the agency’s Uniformed Division on Monday night, highlighted concerns about the agency’s ability to protect Trump in the lead-up to the Republican National Convention.
Rowe, who was elevated to the position of acting director following the resignation of his predecessor, Kimberly Cheatle, admitted that the July 13 shooting was “a failure on multiple levels.” He revealed that neither the Secret Service counter-sniper teams nor members of Trump’s security detail had any knowledge that there was a man on the roof of the American Glass Research building with a firearm.
FYI, Acting Secret Service Director Ronald L. Rowe, Jr. worked for:
1. Obama White House
2. Senate Judiciary Chairman Pat Leahy (D-VT)
Don’t let him pretend he is a career, non-partisan law-enforcement official.
He’s a former partisan Democrat staffer. https://t.co/7959nOqUNy pic.twitter.com/sFxq1TZnmm
— 🇺🇸 Mike Davis 🇺🇸 (@mrddmia) July 30, 2024
The gunman, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was spotted on the roof less than 150 yards from where Trump was speaking. Despite this, Rowe claimed that the Secret Service was unaware of his presence until after the shooting had occurred.
Rowe’s testimony came under fire from several lawmakers, including Senator Josh Hawley, who accused the Secret Service of making a politically motivated decision to deny Trump extra security. Hawley also questioned Rowe about the agency’s decision to not secure the roof of the American Glass Research building, which he called “indefensible.”
🚨🚨🚨 EXCLUSIVE: A Secret Service counter sniper sent an email Monday night to the entire Uniformed Division (not agents) saying he will not stop speaking out until “5 high-level supervisors (1 down) are either fired or removed from their current positions.” The counter sniper… pic.twitter.com/0dg99EESQk
— Susan Crabtree (@susancrabtree) July 30, 2024
“Isn’t the fact that a former president was shot, that a good American is dead, that other Americans were critically wounded – isn’t that enough mission failure for you to say to the person who decided that that building should not be in the security perimeter, probably ought to be stepped down?” Hawley asked.
Rowe defended the agency’s actions, stating that the Secret Service had made an assumption that there would be sufficient security coverage from local law enforcement. He also claimed that the agency had not received information from local law enforcement about the presence of an armed subject on the roof.
The hearing also revealed new details about the investigation into the shooting. The FBI announced that Crooks had looked online for information about mass shootings, power plants, improvised explosive devices, and the May assassination attempt of the Slovakian prime minister. The bureau also revealed that Trump had agreed to be interviewed as a crime victim, as he had been struck in the ear by a bullet or fragment of one during the shooting.
Acting USSS Director Ronald Rowe deflects and refuses to answer why or how a USSS Counter Sniper whistleblower’s email transmitted exposing the agency warning another assassination attempt against President Trump could happen in the next 30 days was deleted from within the agency pic.twitter.com/3ZdH6r86P0
— Drew Hernandez (@DrewHLive) July 30, 2024
The hearing and the ongoing investigation into the assassination attempt have raised serious questions about the Secret Service’s ability to protect the President and other high-profile individuals. As the investigation continues, it remains to be seen whether the agency will be able to regain the trust of the American people and Congress.

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